Heavy rainfall causes concern for swimming pool owners

Friday

Mar 26, 2010 at 12:01 AMMar 26, 2010 at 11:57 PM

The swimming pool was one of the main reasons Joe Fraioli and his wife bought their first home on Rockland’s East Water Street nine years ago. But all the heavy rainfall in recent weeks has caused problems with his and many in-ground pools.

Staff reports

The swimming pool was one of the main reasons Joe Fraioli and his wife bought their first home on Rockland’s East Water Street nine years ago.

But all the heavy rainfall in recent weeks has caused problems with his and many in-ground pools.

Pressure from high groundwater – due to the heavy rain that saturated the ground – can damage an in-ground pool. Experts called it pool “floating.”

In Fraioli’s case, the groundwater pressure caused the pool liner to detach and the wall foam, located between the pool wall and the liner, to bulge.

“The water pressure under their pool became greater than the water in the pool,” said Jay Ross, owner of Jay Jay’s Pool Service in Whitman, who has been servicing the Fraioli’s pool for the past nine years. “In the meantime, the water traveled under the liner and the liner wrinkled.”

Fiberglass in-ground pools are also susceptible to high groundwater, said Kelly Bowman of Cherry Hill Pool and Spa of Pembroke.

“(Fiberglass) pool owners need to keep an eye on their pool over the winter and leave water in the pool,” Bowman said. “If you drain the water out of any pool style, and there is enough ground water, any pool can float like a boat.”

According to Ross, who specializes in vinyl-liner, in-ground pools, pool owners need to take notice and be proactive.

“I have had eight calls in the last three days for pools that are floating,” he said.

The cost to fix a floating, vinyl-liner pool ranges from $600 to $2,000, while fixing a floating fiberglass pool could cost thousands, Bowman said.

Luckily, the Fraiolis checked below the pool cover, called a professional and averted a more serious problem, Ross said.

“If they waited any longer, the liner could have torn out completely,” he said.